Monday, September 27, 2010

Paper Clips, Safety Pins and Staples...they aren't what they used to be!

Does anybody else remember strong paper-clips? Or staples that actually required a staple remover for removal? Or safety pins that would actually hold something secure without bending out of shape?

All in the name of "conservation" (or is it just in the name of skimping on quality?), these items are being made with less and less of the metal required to make a quality product, so they are thinner and more flimsy as a result. Now we have "barely there" paper clips that won't hold paper, safety pins that won't hold anything at all, and staples that simply break in half when you attempt to remove them from paper. Flimsy staples, flimsy paper clips, flimsy safety pins. Sometimes it really takes a certain amount of raw material to make a quality product. Skimping just doesn't yield a positive outcome.

How is this better? If the item is of such poor quality that it no longer works for its intended purpose, there is no savings or conservation achieved. We end up using twice as many, or worse, buying them and then just tossing them into the landfill unused with all the other worthless trash in our world. Now the flimsy staples and flimsy paper clips will pile up next to the flimsy file folders and flimsy binders with metal clasps that don't close properly enough to merit being carried to school in any backpack.

Does anybody else have a paper clip, staple, or safety pin gripe? (also, the new water bottles "with 50% less plastic" are worthless, while we're on the subject of less material to make products)

I try to stay away from plastic water bottles, but on occasion, I do purchase one, and the new ones can't even stand up to normal grip. They crush in when you hold them, thus causing an expulsion of water...right onto whatever part of you happens to be in the way. Conservation? I think not. Now, those people who would normally have kept a water bottle for more than one use will no longer have any reason to do so because these are of such poor quality that they are not worth re-using. Way to go, corporate think tank! (I actually prefer to use a Voss glass water bottle--no plastic chemicals, and reusable to infinity, unless you break it.)